


Puncture Repair

by Summerunderthesea



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Homophobia, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor character injury - blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-25
Updated: 2016-11-25
Packaged: 2018-09-02 00:34:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8644477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Summerunderthesea/pseuds/Summerunderthesea
Summary: Oikawa loved to antagonise his parents, and would make up ridiculous lies just to start an argument. He'd tell them that he'd gotten a week's detention, just to see how they'd react, or borrow some of Ayano's make up just to see his father's face when he walked in the door wearing lipstick and eyeliner. Every time, he'd joke about it with Hajime beforehand, trying to come up with an even better lie to tell. But then he'd end up at Hajime's place that night, crying on his shoulder and searching for reassurance and they'd kiss and it'd be both wonderful and ridiculously painful. And then they'd pretend it had never happened, and Hajime would pretend it didn't rip him up inside. Every single fucking time.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Fic named for Elbow song of same name.
> 
> This is my first time writing these guys, so any constructive criticism would be really appreciated :)

Hajime _wanted_ to just to join his younger sister at the dinner table, fill his empty stomach with a nice warm meal, and rant about how frustrating and long training had been today. But the glare Ayano gave him made it clear that he wasn't going to do any of that until he stumbled upstairs and took a shower.

He tried to ignore the look he was getting, wandering over to the stove and helping himself to a generous serving of dinner.

'Nope. Shower first,' Ayano demanded. 'You stink.' She wrinkled up her nose to really drive the point home.

Hajime sighed. 'Just one bite…' he tried, and his sister's glare intensified in response.

'Shower. Now.'

So Hajime took his stupid (though admittedly much-needed) shower, dried his stupid hair, and wandered down to the kitchen ten minutes later, almost ready to collapse from exhaustion. He made sure to let Ayano know exactly how tired he was, and how cruel it had been to refuse him food, but she just laughed in his face as he scoffed down his dinner.

'Stop being so dramatic. You sound just like Oikawa' she teased.

Hajime muttered a half-baked insult into his bowl, unable to come up with a decent response because he was very, very tired. Something which he tried to remind his sister of when he was finished his meal, while she was slapping him with the tea-towel and reminding him that she had been the one to do the dishes last night.

'One hour of training before school,' he listed. 'Half an hour during lunch. And three hours afterwards, _plus_ the walk home.'

She snorted, not even looking away from the television. 'You should've taken up an instrument,' she said. 'Us musicians get to sit down for the whole of practice.'

'And it was raining,' he tried.

'Barely. It's only just started to pick up now.'

They were still bickering when the doorbell rang. Ayano just raised her eyebrows at him.

'Are you serious?' he asked, incredulous. 'You're closer, and you're just watching some dumb reality program, and I am literally dying of exhaustion. Like, I will collapse.'

The doorbell rang twice more, and Hajime reluctantly wiped his hands dry before throwing the tea-towel at Ayano's face. At least his intense practice schedule came in handy for one thing, he supposed.

She threw it back at him as he walked, but he caught it easily with one hand, while opening the door with the other, and couldn't resist the urge to poke his tongue out at her.

At the sight of Oikawa, the mood of the Iwaizumi siblings changed instantly. Hajime's stomach jolted as he looked at the tears streaming down Oikawa's cheeks, and his soaking hair, and his pale skin, and none of that was particularly new, but Hajime caught sight of Oikawa's blood soaked hands and he realised that everything was different this time.

Oikawa practically threw himself at Hajime, and Hajime's arms tightened around him until we was worried the other boy might break, but he didn't want to let go. Oikawa sobbed into his shoulder, and Hajime pulled one hand up to card through his hair, as slowly and gently as he could manage considering his anger at Oikawa's father. 'What did he do to you?' Hajime asked, unable to hide the fury in his voice.

'He-' Oikawa started, but his words were cut off by another sob, and he started gasping for air.

Hajime realised he needed to change his tack, and took a deep breathe to swallow his anger. He let go of Oikawa's waist and placed them on the other boy's shoulders instead, looking up into his eyes.

'Hey, hey, hey,' he murmured softly. 'It's okay Tooru, you're okay.'

Usually the use of Oikawa's first name would soothe him, help him breathe a little better, but Hajime wasn't sure that it was working this time. He wrapped Oikawa back up into a hug, because _God_ he just needed to hold him, to feel like he wasn't completely useless right now.

He wasn't sure how long they were standing there for before Oikawa's sobs started to ease, and he felt a tap on his shoulder. Ayano held out first aid supplies and exchanged them for the tea towel, and wandered over to the kitchen, looking at Hajime meaningfully.

'C'mon' he whispered to Oikawa. 'Let's get upstairs.'

He couldn't take Oikawa's hands for fear of causing more pain, so took him carefully by the wrist instead and led him gently upstairs. Oikawa just followed along blindly, looking so small and broken that it took everything Hajime had to keep his anger in check, to not run over to Oikawa's house this instant.

In all the times Oikawa's come over, messily crying and searching for reassurance after an argument with his parents, he'd never been injured before.

Hajime steered Oikawa into his bedroom and sat him gently on the floor before rushing across to the bathroom and getting a bowl of warm water.

He sat down opposite to Oikawa and grabbed his hands, soaking them in the bowl. The blood was slowly washed away, diffusing outwards to dye the water red. They watched in silence, save for Oikawa's still ragged breathing, and Hajime found the experience strangely hypnotic.

He left the room again to pour the water out, then examined Oikawa's hands with tweezers at the ready, pulling out pieces of glass as he came across them. Oikawa bit down hard on his lip as Hajime went over the cuts with disinfectant before bandaging, trying to hide the pain, but Hajime noticed immediately, so used to reading Oikawa after years of experience.

 _Just tell me you're hurting_ , Hajime thought with some frustration. But Oikawa was here, letting Hajime see his tears and comfort him and showing signs of pain that he would never let anyone else see, and Hajime was infinitely grateful for that.

And then Oikawa's hands were bandaged, and the two boys inched closer together, desperate to be touching again, and Oikawa was on Hajime's lap, and Hajime's hands were tangled in Oikawa's hair, and their lips were together and…

This was the bit that fucking _ruined_ Hajime, shattered his heart into a million pieces, and he knew he shouldn't let it happen but he did, he always did, because for a few moments he could pretend that Oikawa was his.

This part was nothing new. Almost none of it was new, not the doorbell or the crying or the hugging or the kissing. Just the hands.

Hajime thought it had started in their final year of middle school, when he was around for dinner after volleyball practice. He'd known Oikawa for years, the other boy had latched onto him the very first time they met, calling him Iwa-chan and following him to volleyball and driving him insane on a regular basis, and yet Hajime had rarely spent time with Oikawa's parents.

Part of this was intentional. Oikawa's mother was kind, but timid, rarely speaking when Hajime was around. His father was loud and quick to anger.

At dinner, Oikawa's father had been grilling him about school. Hajime had had to admit that he had failed English, a subject he'd never particularly enjoyed, and Oikawa's fathers eyes had narrowed, despite the smile still fixed on his face.

'Perhaps you boys spend too much time on volleyball, and too little on your studies,' he'd suggested.

Hajime had looked over at Oikawa, unsure how to respond, and Oikawa had scowled at his father.

'Volleyball's more important anyway,' he'd responded.

Oikawa's father fixed his gaze on Hajime once more. 'Sometimes, I wish you'd never introduced our son to volleyball. I hope you don't prove to be a bad influence on him.'

Hajime's eyes had dropped to the table, his cheeks burning. How was he meant to respond to that?

'It was a hard test!' Oikawa had protested. 'Iwa-chan did better than me at it anyway.'

Hajime had looked over at Oikawa again, confused. Oikawa aced tests without even trying, hadn't come close to failing one in his entire life. Hajime knew for a fact that Oikawa had only gotten one question wrong in that particular test. So why was he lying?

It certainly wasn't to placate his father, whose face had suddenly turned a violent red. Hajime could almost see the steam coming out of his ears like an angry cartoon character.

And then the yelling had started. He'd called Oikawa stupid and useless, told him he'd never get anywhere playing volleyball, and thrown in a couple of insulting swear words for good measure, yet Oikawa hadn't even flinched. At one point, he'd even laughed.

Hajime had watched it play out, incredulous. Was this normal for Oikawa? Was it normal for other families? He'd never seen any parents yell so much at their children before. When he'd told his mother he'd failed, she'd given him an 'I'm not angry, just disappointed' lecture and a reminder to put volleyball second to schoolwork, before tiredly kissing him goodnight.

Oikawa's father didn't kiss him goodnight, just angrily stormed out of the room. Oikawa had grabbed Hajime and charged in the opposite direction, still seeming mostly collected despite his too-tight grip on Hajime's hand.

'Why did you lie, idiot?' Hajime had asked once they were in Oikawa's room. He'd expected Oikawa to reply with an angry comment or a joke or something, but his question was left unanswered.

That was when Hajime had noticed the tears trickling down at Oikawa's face, and felt an odd tug at his heart. It was when he'd wrapped Oikawa up in his arms and whispered stupid but apparently calming things in his ears, and complemented him so much more than he usually would, trying to match each cruel comment Oikawa's father had made with a kind one. It was when their eyes had locked, and Hajime had gently placed his hands on Oikawa's face, and their lips had first crashed together, violent and filled with desperation and grief but so beautiful, so much more beautiful than Hajime could ever have imagined. It was then that Hajime had first realised he was in love.

But then next morning, when they'd woken up tangled up in their sheets and in each other, neither of them had acknowledged the events of the night before, and things had continued as normal, except that now Hajime was in love with his best friend.

Something seemed to have shifted that night though. Oikawa loved to antagonise his parents, and would make up ridiculous lies just to start an argument. He'd tell them that he'd gotten a week's detention, just to see how they'd react, or borrow some of Ayano's make up just to see his father's face when he walked in the door wearing lipstick and eyeliner. One time, he'd tried to get a tattoo, but had panicked before the needle even touched his skin. Hajime had teased him, unable to understand how this was the same boy who had attempted (although ultimately failed) to play a match volleyball without telling anyone he'd sprained a wrist when they were in their first year of middle school, but had helped him draw a tattoo on with a permanent marker instead.

Every time, he'd joke about it with Hajime beforehand, trying to come up with an even better lie to tell. But then he'd end up at Hajime's place that night, crying on his shoulder and searching for reassurance and they'd kiss and it'd be both wonderful and ridiculously painful. And then they'd pretend it had never happened, and Hajime would pretend it didn't rip him up inside. Every single fucking time.

Hajime thought that the worst part was how much he treasured those nights, because of the kissing and the bed-sharing and the way Oikawa looked when Hajime called him 'Tooru'. And then he'd remember how upset Oikawa was, how unbelievably unfair it was that he even had to come over at all, and Hajime would realise what a horrible person he was, but he'd keep kissing Oikawa anyway.

This time was different though, because Oikawa's hands were bandaged and he'd been so inconsolable something _more_ had clearly happened, so Hajime kissed him only briefly before softly pulling back.

'Do you think you can tell me what happened?' he asked quietly.

Oikawa picked up one of Hajime's hands and started fiddling with his fingers, wincing because he was obviously in pain, but continuing to do so anyway. He was facing down, watching as he drew circles on Hajime's fingers; his hair, still limp from the rain, covered his eyes.

Hajime waited patiently, and eventually Oikawa spoke, still refusing to look up.

'I told my parents I like guys,' he almost whispered.

For a second Hajime felt a tentative kind of elation, because maybe just this once Oikawa was telling the truth, maybe he really did like guys, maybe he even liked Hajime. But then he remembered how the story ended, and all too quickly his cautious happiness was replaced with anger and sympathy and a burning sensation behind his eyes.

'Your hands?' he asked, his voice cracking.

Maybe it was because Hajime was starting to cry, or because he wanted to see how Hajime reacted, or because he simply needed comfort, but finally Oikawa looked back up.

'He didn't do it. I just got angry.' Oikawa's voice was getting shaky, and his tears, which had never really stopped, came faster now. 'I punched some windows. And then I started to -'

 _To cry,_ Hajime supposed Oikawa had been trying to say, before he'd been unable to talk between sobs.

At first Hajime felt relieved, that Oikawa's father hadn't hurt him, but then he pictured Oikawa, punching in windows angrily, ignoring the glass in his hands until he broke down sobbing, becoming the mess he was now. _He did do this,_ Hajime thought, furious. _Maybe not directly, but it's still his fault._

Hajime wrapped him in another hug and pressed a kiss against his forehead. 'I'm here,' he murmured. He didn't think anything in the world could convince him to let go of Oikawa at that moment.

'It-hurts-- so much,' Oikawa whimpered, and Hajime's heart broke. He didn’t know what to do, except to keep whispering. _I'm here I'm here I'm here._

Slowly, gently, Hajime pulled off Oikawa's still-wet shirt, trying to keep it away from the bandaged hands, then turned away politely, rifling through his drawers to find something for Oikawa to wear. He passed the pants over first, then smiled when he found the alien t-shirt Oikawa had jokingly given to him for his birthday. He helped Oikawa pull it on, although the gesture was probably unnecessary, and smiled fondly when Oikawa gave a watery laugh at his shirt selection.

He guided Oikawa into their bed and wrapped an arm around him. They lay there silently, Hajime's face buried in Oikawa's hair. Oikawa's breathing slowed, and Hajime tried to match it, his eyes beginning to close against his will despite the early time.

They were quiet for so long, Hajime thought Oikawa was asleep.

'It never feels real,' Oikawa whispered.

'Hey?' Hajime asked. He wanted to roll Oikawa over, to try and read his face while he spoke, but something told him that Oikawa was only able to talk about this because he was facing away from Hajime.

'The next day. It always feels like I just dreamed it. I- I want it to be real.'

Hajime's heart began to hammer against his chest, so forceful he couldn't help but wonder if it Oikawa could feel it. He leaned over and kissed Oikawa's cheek.

'I do too,' he confessed, cheeks on fire, and Oikawa didn't respond. Iwaizumi barely noticed though, because at that moment his eyes finally found their way closed and he fell asleep almost immediately.

At some point he awoke to the creak of his door opening.

'Mum?' he asked quietly, not sure if she was still even there. He heard her creep into the room and looked up at her sleepily as she kissed him on the forehead.

'I love you,' he mumbled, unsure if the words reached her.

'You too,' she replied, squeezing his hand while kissing Oikawa's head. Hajime was asleep again before she even left the room.

 

* * *

 

The next time Hajime woke up it was to the sound of Oikawa's phone buzzing on the bedside table.

'Oikawa?' he whispered, not wanting to wake the other boy.

'Iwa-chan?' he heard in reply. Oikawa rolled over and looked Hajime in the eyes. Hajime swallowed. He didn't even think there was a centimetre between their lips.

He thought of what Oikawa had said the night before. _I want it to be real._ Summoning every ounce of courage, he closed the small amount of distance between them, and kissed Oikawa, quickly but softly. It was different to every other time they'd kissed - more gentle, more cautious, and something that promised hope and happiness, instead of a violent plea for help. Best of all, Hajime thought as he pulled back to trace his thumb across Oikawa's cheek, the kiss was free from guilt.

 'It is real, Tooru,' he said, thinking that he liked how the name fell from his mouth. 'I promise.'

Oikawa - Tooru - smiled at him, and Hajime remembered that for all of the kissing and hugging he got from sad Tooru he liked this Tooru a million times better, because he wanted Tooru to always be happy, even if it meant going to stupid alien movies and practicing volleyball for hours every day.

Tooru's phone buzzed again.

'Can you check it?' he asked Hajime, his voice small. Hajime reached over to grab the phone.

 

_(5) missed calls from Okaasan_

_Okaasan (11:48pm): Your father and I have finished a long conversation_

_Okaasan (11:50pm): When you decide to come home, I can make sure he won't be here._

_Okaasan (11:55pm): If that's what you'd like_

_Okaasan (1:05am): I love you, always_

_Okaasan (1:50am): Please come home_

_Nee-san (6:56am): <3 <3 <3_

 

Tooru was looking at him, waiting with baited breath.

Hajime smiled. 'I think it's going to be okay.'


End file.
